Govt staffer red-faced over Facebook post on ‘Occupy violence’

A staffer at the office of Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying felt outrage at the sight of a police officer with a bloodied face and bruised hands, apparently a victim of violence perpetrated by the pro-democracy protesters.

Shocked by this instance of mindless brutality, Andrew Fung Wai-kwong, an information coordinator at the Office of the Chief Executive, posted a picture of the hapless police officer on his Facebook page to show to the public what unruly mobs are capable of doing when they encounter law enforcers who are just doing their job.

“It is not right for anyone to use violence,” Fung fumed on Facebook. “And we should give sympathy to the police officers who were hurt while doing their work.”

“Democracy is also about caring,” he added.

Who wouldn’t agree with Fung’s righteous indignation? Except over one small detail: the picture isn’t real. It’s a still from Hong Hong Kong Television’s (01137.HK) drama series Night Shift.

The post was later removed from Fung’s Facebook page, but not before earning hearty guffaws from netizens who recognized the blooper, Next Magazine reported.

Other viewers did not find it amusing, noting that Fung should have verified the picture’s authenticity before posting it.

What he did amounted to rumor-mongering, commented one netizen.

A reporter was able to capture the post before it was deleted and posted it back on Fung’s Facebook page.

HKTV also got wind of the post, which was soon trending on social media, and provided some annotation.

“I was shocked to know that some people shared this photo and said that a policeman was beaten up by protesters. This is just a picture shared by our make-up artist who wanted to show his work to friends,” the network’s Facebook manager said, adding that the picture is that of actor Wu Kwing-lung.

HKTV’s Night Shift will start airing next month, coinciding with the launch of the network’s online shopping platform.

Shoppertainment integrates a 24-hour branded product online shopping mall, HKTV Mall, with the network’s TV entertainment platform, the company said in a regulatory filing Wednesday.

HKTV said about 200 local and international merchants have confirmed their participation in the online shopping platform, which will offer electronic devices, food, jewelry and other products.

The company expects to generate income from commissions, advertisement, content distribution, as well as overseas copyright sales.

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